What's New?

What's New?

XP Documentation-PCE

The program is not usually listed in the Start- All Programs menu. The program file iseudcedit.exe and is in the system folder \Windows\System32\. To open the program, go to Start-Run and enter "eudcedit" (without quotes).

The grid shows the hexadecimal code that will be assigned to your new character. In above picture, a character with code E000 has already been created in the first box and the second box, whose hex number would be E001, has been selected.

The next step is to click "OK" and the palette window (Figure 2), where you can draw a new font, will open. There is a toolbar on the left with some basic tools. Shown in the figure is the "pencil" used for freehand drawing. In addition to the toolbar, there is a "Tools" menu. Figure 3 shows the menu with a list of the available tools

Note: The tools are similar to those in Paint and will be familiar to anyone who has used a graphics program.

Figure 4 shows my shaky effort at making a font of my initials to put into e-mail as asignature. Those with a steadier hand and better calligraphy will be able to do a much nicer job. Keep in mind that the actual size of the palette is 50 pixels square. When making a custom font, you have the choice of associating the new font with a particular font family or with all fonts. If you choose a particular font family, your custom font will be available from there only. After you have drawn and edited the figure to your satisfaction, save the font. Note that the "Save Character" operation is in the "Edit" menu.

The next step in actually using the custom font is to open the Character Map. The font will be listed as "All Fonts (Private Characters)" or under a particular font-private characters if you chose that option. Figure 5 shows the Character Map display. Select the custom fontand click "Copy". That places it in the clipboard where it can be pasted into any document in the regular way.

Figure 6 shows the custom font pasted into an e-mail in Outlook Express. One thing to remember is that the regular operations applicable to a font hold (size, bold, italic, and so forth). In the figure the custom font is 20 point while the text is 10.

What's New?   New Views and Options in Folders   In folder that store pictures, you may notice that pictures will display a bit different. This is the Filmstrip View. Use the arrow buttons to click through a slideshow of the photos in the folder.     Use the left Panel options to burn a CD, order pictures, or other options. Click the double arrows on the upper right side of each small window in the left pane to display or hide the options.       Rotating Photos in Window View   You can rotate photos in the Window View without the help of a graphics program. Right-click over a photo and choose Rotate Clockwise or Rotate Counter Clockwise depending your preference for the photo. It may take a few seconds for the change to occur.       Navigating the Control Panel   In the XP Theme, the Control Panel appears differently than in Windows 2000. In Windows XP, the Control Panel will display in Category View. To switch back to Classic View, click the link, Switch to Classic View, on left hand side of the Control Panel.       New and Improved Taskbar   The Taskbar has a couple of new features that make it easier to manage open files and programs.   Example: In Internet Explorer, in the example below, there are several windows opened on the desktop. Windows XP will display only one button on the Taskbar for Internet Explorer windows that are opened.     This will group all windows of each program opened making the Taskbar look neater and more organized. When windows are grouped, a small white arrow will display on the Taskbar button. Follow the steps below for Maximinze and closing windows open on the Taskbar.   1. Click the Taskbar button for Internet Explorer (or the program opened) and all the windows will display in a pop-up menu.   2. Several options will be available:   o Select the desired window of the program to maximize.   o If desired to close only one program window, click the Taskbar button and select the window and right-click over that window button in the popup and choose Close.     3. When the Taskbar button is right-clicked, options to Close Group, Minimize Group or choose a Tile option will display.       Changing Options for the Taskbar:   1. Settings for the Taskbar can be changed by right-clicking over an empty area of the Taskbar and choosing Properties from the shortcut menu.   2. The Taskbar and Start Menu Properties dialog box will appear. Choose the desired settings for the Taskbar appearance and Notification area.   3. Click the Customize... button to customize the Notification area if desired.   4. Click OK when done.       Burning a CD Using Windows Explore   With Windows XP, it is possible to burn a CD directly from the Window's Explorer window. Follow the steps below to burn a CD.   1. Open the Windows Explorer by right-clicking over the My Computer icon and choosingExplore from the shortcut menu.     2. Select the desired files and folders and drag them to the DVD/CD-RW Drive icon. TheCopying... dialog box will appear as the folders and files coping over the DVD/CD-RW Drive.     3. Once the files have been copied, a small balloon window will appear in the lower right hand corner of the desktop. Click the balloon to the see the files that are ready to burn to the CD.     4. A window for the DVD/CD-RW Drive will appear with dimmed icons representing the data ready to be burned. In the Left Pane, click the link, Write these files to CD.     5. The CD Writing Wizard will appear. Follow the instructions in the Wizard to complete the task of burning the CD. Click Next as prompted.     6. The next screen will prompt for a burnable CD to be placed in the CD-RW drive. ClickNext when ready.     7. The next screen will display progress bar. Click Next when it appears not grayed out.     8. The next screen will display that the files have been successfully written to the CD. Click the checkbox next to Yes, write these files to another CD to make another copy of previous CD or Click Finish when done.           What's New?   Secrity Center       One new feature of Windows XP is the Security Center. The Security Center provides a place where you can check the settings of three ways to help secure your computer:   • Windows Firewall   • Automatic Updates   • Antivirus Software     Windows Firewall   The Windows Firewall helps to protect your computer from attacks by restricting how other people can access your computer over the Internet. It helps to ensure that nothing gets into your computer that you want to keep out, like viruses or other threats.   The Windows Firewall is on by default, and you can check the status of the Windows Firewall by opening the Security Center. You can also set up exceptions for the firewall and change advanced settings in the Security Center.     Automatic Updates   Automatic Updates is a Windows XP component that allows your computer to automatically get important updates from Microsoft. Occasionally, someone finds a vulnerability in Windows XP that could be used to harm your computer. Microsoft releases updates that fix the vulnerability. If Automatic Updates is enabled, Windows XP will automatically get the update and install it for you when you're connected to the Internet.   You can check the status of Automatic Updates in the Security Center. You can change some settings for Automatic Updates in the Seucirty Center, such as setting Automatic Updates to alert you when updates are available instead of downloading and installingthem automatically.         What's New?   Networking     The Windows XP Network Setup Wizard simplifies the process of setting up a network.   Windows XP makes networking easier than previous version of Windows did. With thenetworking tools in Windows XP, you can easily setup your computers to share an Internet connection, files and folders, and hardware like printers and scanners.   The Network Setup Wizard in Windows XP helps to automate the process of setting up yourhome or small office network. You physically connect your computer, then run the Network Setup Wizard to setup your network.   With the wizard, you can:   • Share an Internet connection between all the computer in your network.   • Give your computer a name and description so you can easily identify it on the network.   • Setup your network to share files and hardware (printers, scanners, etc)     Once you have the network setup on your Windows XP computer, you can run the Network Setup Wizard on the other Windows 98, Windows Me, and Windows XP computers in your network.         What's New?   Browsing the Internet       Internet Explorer and Windows Messenger in Windows XP offers improvements over previous versions of Windows when it comes to browsing the Internet. Windows XP offers better security and privacy when browsing the Internet, plus new features for MSN andWindows Messenger users.   Along with the Security Center and Firewall Windows XP also includes the most recent and most secure version of Internet Explorer. The four security zones in Internet Explorer allow you to set different security options for sites you trust, your local intranet, the Internet, and sites you don't trust. Combined with Windows Firewall, the improvements to Internet Explorer and Microsoft's timely patches for newly discovered security flaws ensures that browsing the Internet on a Windows XP computer is much safer than browsing the Internet on a computer running a previous version of Windows. Security isn't the only improvement for browsing the Internet using Windows XP. Windows XP also comes with new versions ofWindows Messenger and MSN Explorer.